Recall effort looks to unseat three Gwinnett commissioners

By Patrick Fox

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

The Gwinnett County Elections Office has issued applications to recall three county commissioners. The move comes one week after the five-member board voted 4-1 to increase the property tax rate by almost 21 percent.

Recall applications were filed for Commission Chairman Charles Bannister, District 1 Commissioner Shirley Lasseter and District 3 Commissioner Mike Beaudreau. Commissioners Kevin Kenerly and Bert Nasuti, who both voted in favor of the tax hike, are not seeking reelection in 2010. Beaudreau was the commission's lone dissenter on the vote.

Organizers of the drive have until Dec. 23 to collect the signatures of 100 registered voters living in the district affected. Election workers would have four days to verify the signatures. If the applications are certified, the elections office would then issue recall petitions, which in turn would have to carry the names of 30 percent of registered voters in the district.

This means organizers would have 45 days to get 28,000 signatures to recall Lasseter, 41,000 to recall Beadreau and 126,000 to recall Bannister. If successful, the elections office would schedule a special election to put the recall to a vote.